


Seasonally Jealous

by Artan



Series: Fluency AU [6]
Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: Apologies, Customs, F/M, Jealousy, Language, Suggestive Themes, Winter, scent
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-07
Updated: 2016-10-07
Packaged: 2018-08-20 00:45:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8230400
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Artan/pseuds/Artan
Summary: Customs are a funny thing.  The smallest gestures in one may be the greatest of insults in another.  Unintended consequences can lead to hurt feelings.  While the modern mammal may not have all of the raging instincts of the past, the effects still linger.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Bold is Vulpine  
> Italics are Lapine

Nick was glad for his winter coat, just not so much for the vacuuming that went along with it.  The warm fur made the morning’s patrol through the southern portions of Tundratown bearable.  With so much of the population, and more importantly police, taking some of this time to hibernate other districts were forced to pick up the slack.  Which was exactly why Nick found himself further north this time of year, let alone day, than he wanted to be.

He looked over at his partner; she sat in the driver’s seat of their patrol car.  Judy’s own winter coat had come-in about a week after the cold had struck.  The two had spent several hours sitting together on the carpeted floor of their apartment brushing each other, mostly.  Grey, orange, and black clumps of fur had nearly filled a small wastebasket they had set aside, but it was all worth it.  She was so fluffy with all of the extra fur; he had trouble keeping his paws off of her.  Not that she minded, grooming was an important part of lapine social hierarchies.  It meant she was the boss, and she liked to be the boss.  Of course, he had also filled out.  The police academy had given him plenty of lean muscle, if nothing else.  All of that however was hidden beneath his thick fur.  Somehow, that only made his mate’s touch more electrifying.  Even the memory of her soft pad-less paws running against his skin through his winter coat made him shiver.  At the very least, she had enjoyed grooming his tail, brushing it until it shone.

Any further recollections were halted by the squawk of the cruiser’s radio.  “Cruiser 49, this is Dispatch, you receiving?”  Clawhauser’s voice was unmistakable through the handset.  “Loud and clear Dispatch, what is it?”  Judy answered the call before Nick had even started reaching for it.  “We have a report of vandalism in progress near your location.  Address is 17249 Permafrost.”  Nick straightened in his seat as the two sped towards the call.  “Roger that Dispatch, we are en route.”   Somehow, he had never really managed to properly brace himself for Judy’s driving.  At least the seat belt caught him this time.

They arrived on scene to find a teenaged White-tailed deer stood next to a black gym bag.  He was staring at the brickwork before him with a partially completed image still dripping in some places.  The rest of the provocatively dressed pantheress had frozen in the cold morning air.  At least the important bits were in color.  He seemed surprised as the cruiser closed in on him; somehow he must have missed the deep-throated rumble.  How it happened amidst the empty streets and gently falling snow didn’t matter as he made a fast getaway, abandoning his bag on the partially drifted sidewalk.  The deer was fast with long legs to carry him away.  Nick was faster, taking a few short cuts to get ahead of the cervine miscreant.  Judy was fastest.  The snow didn’t even seem to slow her down as she ran forward with powerful strides.  Nick rounded a corner just in time to see the deer’s eyes widen as he fell face first into the snow.  His partner stood firmly of the hoodlum’s back as she swiftly cuffed him and read him his rights.

Nick helped march their quarry back to the cruiser.  A small part of him could smell the sweat on all three of them.  The scent of light salt and cedar and something indescribably intoxicating stood out against the sharp cold.  Another scent of musk and salt was there too, but it didn’t matter.  They managed to escort the vandal into the back of the patrol car without any incident.  Judy climbed into the cruiser first to call the precinct downtown while Nick collected the gym bag full of spray paint.  He had to struggle to get it into the cruiser’s trunk.  By the time he slid into his seat they were ready to take the teen downtown.  The smaller, enclosed confines of the cruiser seemed to magnify scents.  The vague, violet overtones of the mark he had left on the side of his rabbit’s throat blazed in his mind.  He closed his eyes and let himself become lost in her scent.  It came as a surprise when they pulled to a stop outside the precinct.

Nick shook his head as they took the deer in for processing.  After the usual mess the New Year’s celebrations caused, the next week tended to be fairly quiet.  Luckily for the teenaged delinquent, today was January 4th.  He had the drunk tank all to himself as they let him cool off and wait for a parent to collect him.  The preliminary paperwork took until lunch to fill out.

The path to the fridge and breakroom lead past the front desk.  From his domain in the atrium of the ZPD Benjamin Clawhauser had an amazing memory for the comings and goings of his fellow officers, making him a perfect source for the precinct’s gossip.  It probably didn’t help that he couldn’t keep a secret to save his life, or at least that is how it seemed.  Today however, he seemed more excited than usual to see the two of them.  “Oh hey you two!  There is something I have for each you.”  At times, Nick wondered when the cheetah found a chance to breath.  “What is it Clawhauser?”  Judy said, a wide smile splitting her face.  Nick felt a twisting in the pit of his stomach that he couldn’t explain.  He did feel better after taking a step closer to his mate, however.  Clawhauser continued, seemingly unaware.  “Well, there is an old tradition for us Cheetahs for giving gifts to close friends to celebrate the New Year.  Since you two have made such a big impact here, I thought to get something for each of you.”  With that, he reached under his desk and lifted two boxes wrapped in simple brown paper.  They looked small in his paws but were appropriately scaled when they held them.  Judy was about to open hers when the cheetah stopper her.  “No no no!  Don’t open it in front of me.  It’s bad luck.”  With that he shooed them away.

Judy opened her box first once they reached the break room.  The table they sat at was much too large for them, yet it was the only one available.  MR had promised to get a smaller one by spring, but Nick wasn’t too hopeful.  Inside the plainly wrapped box was a square wooden pendant.  Complex, interlocking geometric designs had been burned onto the wood, catching the eye.  Nick’s box held a tie clip.  Dark, petrified wood was held by burnished steel.  Judy left to thank Clawhauser while Nick took their lunches out of the fridge.  Salad for her and a number of crickets covered in a blueberry sauce for him.  As he waited for her to return, he turned the wooden pendant over and over in his paws.  Something about the small piece of wood was terribly interesting.  So interesting that Judy managed to sneak up on him.  She hopped up next to him on the seat, and until she stilled his paws on the pendant he didn’t notice her.  Her face was filled with concern as she asked him, “Are you ok?”

Something was not ok.  There was something very wrong and he couldn’t quite place what it was.  Nick was about to brush everything off when Judy’s scent hit him again.  The scent of another male was on her.  He marked her quickly, without thinking.  “Nick, are you jealous?”  Judy’s question pierced straight to the heart of the matter.  He felt his lashing tail go stiff and his ears pressed against his skull in mortification.  Even his heart seemed to stop beating for a moment.  His instincts took over.  “I have to go.”  That was all he said before fleeing toward the Chief’s Office, leaving Judy stunned behind him.

She nearly caught him on the way out.  It tore at his heart to do this, but some things were better explained elsewhere.  He didn’t even change, simply taking his jacket and escaping to the metro.  As he rode the train home he berated himself.  What he had done was wrong on so many levels.  He had abandoned his partner, his friend, and his mate all at once.  He pulled his tail tighter around him as the steel rails clattered beneath him.  Today was not going to be a good day.

Shame seemed to blanket him inside the apartment.  The domestic tasks that he typically did everything in his power to avoid were doing nothing to distract him.  The dread that only seemed to grow on him became a physical force at times.  The mixed scents of him and his mate were everywhere, but the small comfort they brought was suddenly shattered.

He could hear Judy coming despite the door between their room and the hallway.  The building was quiet that afternoon, as if holding its breath.  From his position on the couch Nick could see her as she walked in.  She didn’t even look at him.  Rabbits are social creatures by nature; foxes aren’t, yet being shunned by his mate hurt more than almost anything she could say.  “Judy, I need to explain…”  His words fell on deaf ears as she ignored him, walking to their bedroom and shutting the door.  Just before the door closed she looked back, there was both hurt and confusion in her gaze.  Lapine communication had several subtleties, with body language playing a large part in nonverbal messages.  Judy was offended, angered, and hurt, but she was willing to listen if given some time.  He knocked after half an hour to no response.  He spoke anyways.  “Judy, I’m sorry.  I shouldn’t have gotten so worked up over something so small.  More importantly, I shouldn’t have just left you.  I… I have to tell you something.  Something very important about this time of year.  I should have told you about it months ago, and when I realized what I had done, I panicked.  I know that was wrong, but I promise to explain.  Just, let me know when you’re ready.”

She knocked on the door five minutes later.  Nick was still on the couch, slumped forward with his muzzle in his paws.  His ears perked when he heard the knocking, and then fell back against his skull.  “ **This is your den; you don’t need to ask me for anything.** ”  He knew she didn’t want to keep this going; it was hard for both of them.  The door opened slowly and Judy stood pointedly just out of reach.  “ _Nick, we need to talk._ ”  Lapine, she was serious and so he responded in kind.  She kept her arms crossed and ears erect, nothing could save him now but the truth.  “ _There is something I should have told you about long before winter.  Not all species have to deal with this, but foxes do._   Mating Season.”  There didn’t seem to be a word for it in Lapine, which should have clued him in.  It didn’t.  His muzzle went from pointing at the floor to pressed against his collarbone.  “ _There is a special time of year for foxes that pushes us to be with a mate, or to find one.  Mostly, its harmless, I get a bit more pawsey or a stronger reaction to scents.  This year is different.  I think it is because I have finally found you,_ **Soulmate.** ”  Nick felt two soft paws lift his muzzle off his chest and he looked into Judy’s violet eyes.  The hurt and confusion were mostly gone, but it seemed some more explanations were needed.

“ _How long does it last?_ ”  Her tone made it clear he wasn’t entirely forgiven, but it still sounded like music to his ears.  “ _Only for a few more weeks.  It runs from late November to mid-January._ ”  She had another question ready, following right on the heels of the first.  “ _What exactly do you mean when you say mostly harmless?_ ”  Nick sighed before he responded, feeling slightly ashamed.  “ _Well, I can get more emotional, I am much more sensitive to your scent, and I am much more paws-on, so to speak._ ”  He paused for a moment before continuing to talk.  “ _I really should have told you all of this before winter.  I messed up and got scared, which was wrong.  Can you forgive me?_ ”  Carefully, she rubbed his ears and he knew he was forgiven.  She did however have something she needed to say.  “ _I forgive you, dumb fox.  You scared me when you ran off like that.  I also had to spend the rest of the day filling out paperwork since you left.  Now, let’s get some food.  You didn’t even open your lunch today._ ”

They got carry-out that night.  Greasy, fried, and breaded proteins were just what Nick was looking for after a day like that.  His rabbit on the other paw got a salad.  Now he was certain it was a very nice salad, but sometimes he didn’t know how she could eat the same food all the time.  He took his time grooming her after dinner.  Long, slow strokes along the length of her back combined with a gentle ear massage.  With treatment like that, it didn’t take Judy long to drag Nick to the bedroom and make him prove just how sorry he was, and just what made this time of year so special.  The fox was more than willing to oblige.  After biologically mandated cuddle time, Judy had a final word to say on the issue.  “ _Just so you know, you still have one more mammal to apologize too.  Clawhauser seemed somewhat upset after you ran off._ ”

 

The pair came into the precinct several minutes early then next morning.  For once, Nick wasn’t complaining about the early wake-up.  He carried two coffees this time, instead of his usual one.  While Judy peeled off to reserve their seat in the bull pen, the fox headed for the front desk.  It took him a moment to catch the cheetah’s attention from almost below the counter.  “Ben, I need to apologize to you.  I was over reacting the other day and Judy told me you took it personally.”  The portly feline nodded and let Nick keep talking.  “Now I know this isn’t quite equivalent to that, honestly really nice, tie clip but I hope it is at least enough for now.”  Nick had to pull up a chair to place the cup of still hot coffee on the desk, but when Clawhauser’s eyes lit up upon seeing the tie clip he wore he knew he made the right decision.

**Author's Note:**

> Somehow, all of this grew from this seed;  
> Nick turned the object over and over in his paws. "Nick," Judy interrupted, "Are you jealous?" He stiffened and his tail froze.
> 
> While the basic idea for this had been rolling around my mind for a few days, actually writing that blurb down sparked the whole idea off. I may decide to delve deeper into cheetah traditions at another point, but right now I have something else in mind.


End file.
